Peerless Powerhouse

Gaishi Star was about a month's journey from the Main Continent of the End-of-the-World Secret Realm, even considering the extreme speed of an E9-Grade Spaceship.

Yin Congyang submitted the mission application, and a red warning appeared on the screen: "Detected that this is your first training mission. Based on the company's long-term data, the mortality rate for End-of-the-World Region members choosing the Hard difficulty for their first training mission is approximately 51%. Please choose carefully. You may click 'Return' to reselect the mission difficulty. If you confirm, it cannot be undone!"

Yin Congyang clicked confirm and accepted the "Peerless Powerhouse" mission.

"Mission confirmed. The next Warrior Battle on Gaishi Star will take place in three months. Please proceed as soon as possible."

Gaishi Star, Iron Flow City.

In the bustling, clamorous city, endless crowds packed the streets and alleys. Countless skyscrapers stood in tight rows, their massive screens blaring various advertisements. High above, all kinds of aircraft shuttled back and forth—a scene of sheer busyness.

Walking along the street, Yin Congyang looked at the Gaishi Star People, who were extremely similar to Earthlings, and couldn't help but feel a strong sense of familiarity.

Following the map, he headed straight for the registration point of the "Warrior Battle" in Iron Flow City.

Iron Flow City had served as the venue for the Universe Level "Warrior Battle" on Gaishi Star for hundreds of thousands of years. It was named after the third cultivator on Gaishi Star to break through to Immortal. It was said that after breaking through on Gaishi Star, that Immortal had joined the Virtual Universe Company and often fought across the cosmos for them.

At the center of Iron Flow City stood the tallest building in the city, bearing the emblem of the Warrior Battle—very conspicuous.

Several long queues lined up at the entrance of the building. The people in line were all Universe Level, ranging from the first to the ninth tier. Yin Congyang picked a slightly shorter line and slowly moved forward with the crowd.

A few hours later, it was finally his turn to register. He stepped forward, about to report the fabricated identity he had prepared over the past few days, when one of the instruments at the registration desk shot out a silver beam that swept across his body.

"Beep..."

The staff member in charge of registration glanced at the instrument's display, then exclaimed excitedly, "Welcome, Yin Congyang, Your Highness, member of the Virtual Universe Company's End-of-the-World Region, to participate in the Gaishi Star Universe Level Warrior Battle! Please collect your credentials. The Universe Level Warrior Battle will begin on the arenas around Iron Flow City in ten days. Please attend on time!"

The surrounding crowd—those who had already registered and those who hadn't—broke into an uproar. Some impatient ones even flew into the air, trying to get a look at him.

The number of people queuing behind him instantly multiplied several times, as if that would increase their chances of being grouped with him—all hoping to meet him on the arena.

Seeing that instrument, Yin Congyang knew something was wrong. He had been too naive. Gaishi Star did not harbor hostility toward outsiders, so exposing his identity wouldn't bring danger—except on the arena. Off the arena, the people of Gaishi Star wouldn't dare touch a member of the Virtual Universe Company, let alone a prince of the Core Layer.

Thus, to temper its members, the Virtual Universe Company would not allow Core Layer participants to hide their identities.

Shaking his head slightly, he took the competition credentials from the staff member, shot into the sky, and flew straight away from the registration site.

"Universe Level ninth tier. This prince doesn't look much different from us. If we really meet on the arena, maybe there's a chance..." a participant about two meters tall whispered to his companion.

His companion nodded excitedly repeatedly.

"Heh... a chance? You clearly don't know how formidable a prince of the Virtual Universe Company is. I heard from an elder in my clan that the Virtual Universe Company selects only the most talented thousand or so Star Level geniuses from the entire universe every ten thousand years to nurture. That's nothing like our cultivators on Gaishi Star..."

A sneer came from the side. The two participants glared angrily but, bound by the rules, couldn't start a fight. They simply snorted and turned away, ignoring it.

A few days later.

Around Iron Flow City, there were over a hundred groups of arenas, each group consisting of five arenas. Every arena was thirty kilometers long and thirty kilometers wide. For Universe Level fighters, that was quite small, but there was no helping it—there were too many Universe Level participants, so multiple arenas had to be built to avoid overcrowding.

All arenas were made of E-Grade alloy, with E-Grade protective barriers to ensure no accidental injuries to spectators. Every arena was broadcast live from start to finish.

Early in the morning, Yin Congyang put on his competition credentials and arrived at Arena Group 73.

On the back of his credentials, written in Universe Common Language, was the number 73. That meant he would fight his way through Arena Group 73, defeating or killing all participants in that group, and then draw lots to fight the final victors of the other 127 groups one-on-one.

This edition of the Universe Level competition had about a million participants, distributed across 128 arena groups, with roughly over ten thousand people per group. Still, the tournament progressed quickly. Five matches ran simultaneously, each lasting a few minutes at most. If they fought day and night, they could get through many matches in a single day.

In less than ten days, the first round of over five thousand matches ended.

Yin Congyang's first opponent was a Universe Level fifth tier. He charged in desperately, hoping to cut him down. Yin Congyang dodged the first strike and split the opponent in two with a single axe blow.

There was no helping it. In a different setting, Yin Congyang might have held back, but in an arena match—especially one without referees or rules—you never knew what trick your opponent would pull next. The only thing to do was kill them as quickly as possible. He had always believed that a dead opponent was the best opponent.

After the first round ended, the draw for the second round began immediately. As for the injured, those who could be healed went up; those who couldn't still had to go up and last at least a minute before they could concede and go home.

The second round of over 2,500 matches took less than five days. Yin Congyang killed his opponent and advanced again.

The third round took three days.

The fourth round took two days.

By the eighth round, with just over forty matches, Yin Congyang once again killed his opponent and advanced.

By the thirteenth round, only one opponent remained.

"I had people watch your matches. You killed every single one of your opponents in the previous twelve rounds," the Universe Level ninth-tier opponent said calmly. "I know you're a noble prince of the Virtual Universe Company. I'll do my best to defeat you—not for any reward, not to avenge them, but to make you understand that Gaishi Star also has Universe Level powerhouses..."

Yin Congyang had thought he was just facing a passionate Gaishi Star Person, until he sensed a faint ripple of mental power in his sea of consciousness—clearly a crude Illusion Technique. He couldn't help but laugh silently.

Without waiting for the opponent to finish, he flashed in front of him. In the opponent's stunned gaze, he swung his axe diagonally and cleaved him in two.

"The final victor of Arena Group 73: the noble prince of the Virtual Universe Company, Yin Congyang."

A resounding voice rang out from above the arena.

Of the dozen or so opponents he had faced in Arena Group 73, none had put any real pressure on him. The strongest had only reached the sixth level of the Domain and grasped a sliver of the Law of Fire—still a corpse beneath Yin Congyang's axe.

In the other arena groups, the matches progressed at different paces. Some finished faster than Group 73, while others still had one or two rounds left.

Unsurprisingly, all the victors who had finished early gathered around Arena Group 73, clearly wanting to see the combat strength of a Core Layer member from the Virtual Universe Company.

Seeing Yin Congyang kill his opponent so easily and become the final victor of that group, some participants looked worried, while others sneered in disdain—whether at Yin Congyang or at his opponent's petty tricks was unclear.

"All arena group matches have concluded, determining the top 128 for this Warrior Battle. All arena groups will merge, and in one day, the 128-to-64 matches will proceed simultaneously." A clear voice resounded throughout Iron Flow City.

After the draw, Yin Congyang's opponent for the 128-to-64 round was the victor of the 24th arena group—a Gaishi Star Person at the Eighth Layer of the Domain who had comprehended a trace of the Law of Water.

Since the five arenas from each group had been merged, the current arena now spanned over sixty kilometers in length and width, still somewhat cramped for Universe Level combatants.

On the merged 24th arena, Yin Congyang and his opponent stood on opposite sides. The countdown projected from above was reflected on the ground at the arena's center, highly conspicuous.

When the countdown reached zero, Yin Congyang charged toward his opponent. A flying weapon appeared beneath the opponent's feet as he retreated rapidly, while beams of silver light shot from behind him—it was the Mysterious God Weapon, one of the nine divine weapons of a Spiritual Master, a fusion of water and space.

This opponent's law comprehension activated the third form of the Mysterious God Weapon, "Winding Stream Cup." Wave after wave of the Law of Water accompanied the streaks of silver light as they shot toward Yin Congyang.

Yin Congyang's eyes lit up. He spun the Heaven-Opening Axe in his hand, cleaving apart the silver light. This was his first encounter with an opponent using one of the nine divine weapons of a Spiritual Master, and it piqued his interest. Unfortunately, the opponent's law comprehension was too shallow to unleash the fourth form, "Dripping Water Piercing Stone," which might have actually put some pressure on him.

Having scattered the opponent's telekinetic weapon, Yin Congyang accelerated in pursuit. The opponent relied on his telekinetic flying weapon to retreat swiftly while regrouping, reassembling the hundreds of scattered silver beams into a fierce assault against Yin Congyang.

Yin Congyang's footwork shifted left and right, his Heaven-Opening Axe either chopping or parrying. None of the hundreds of silver beams could get near him. The several essences of the Law of Space he had previously comprehended were gradually merging into his axe techniques and movement.

"Pity, the opponent's still too weak. The pressure isn't enough—I haven't even used a tenth of my strength. Let's finish this quickly and see if the next opponent can give me a surprise."

Yin Congyang suddenly accelerated. It had to be said, the Law of Space greatly aided his movement. Compared to five or six years ago, before he had touched the essences of the Law of Space, his movement was now several times stronger.

Under his sudden burst of speed, the opponent was forced into a fluster, abandoning even the scattered Mysterious God Weapon to focus solely on dodging with his flying weapon—yet still, Yin Congyang cornered him.

In the instant before Yin Congyang closed in, the opponent's eyes widened, and he unleashed his long-hidden trump card—Spiritual Impact. But his soul power compared to Yin Congyang's was like the difference between a firefly and the bright moon; its effect on Yin Congyang was less than a gentle breeze brushing his face.

In his unwilling gaze, his neck was cleaved open by the axe.